Loans to make payroll: Dr. William Pentz, 47, a cardiologist with a Philadelphia private practice, and his partners had to tap into their personal assets to make payroll for employees last year. "And we still barely made payroll last paycheck," he said. "Many of us are also skimping on our own pay."

Pentz said recent steep 35% to 40% cuts in Medicare reimbursements for key cardiovascular services, such as stress tests and echocardiograms, have taken a substantial toll on revenue. "Our total revenue was down about 9% last year compared to 2010," he said.

12 entrepreneurs reinventing health care"These cuts have destabilized private cardiology practices," he said. "A third of our patients are on Medicare. So these Medicare cuts are by far the biggest factor. Private insurers follow Medicare rates. So those reimbursements are going down as well."

Pentz is thinking about an out. "If this continues, I might seriously consider leaving medicine," he said. "I can't keep working this way."

Also on his mind, the impending 27.4% Medicare pay cut for doctors. "If that goes through, it will put us under," he said.

Re: BREAKING! Doctors are going broke. A large number of docs headed for bankruptcy.

They were easily 'bought' by Big Pharma, and now they have to pay back the school loans that taught them to be indifferent to human life, to see people as 'units'.

They are 'owned' by Big Pharma and their employers demand they heavily push unsafe vaccines, unproven drugs and ridiculous amounts of incredibly expensive tests. Since they earn commissions on doing so, they can supplement their incomes quite handsomely.

Money.

All because they have lost sight of their gift to Humanity and their lack of desire to honor and value LIFE.

Re: BREAKING! Doctors are going broke. A large number of docs headed for bankruptcy.

Doctors in our area have been living like there is no end to money for 20-25 years.They have 3 or 4 houses, huge boats,etc. In the 90's when Clinton was talking health care, I went to a doctor. I was reading an article about it when the doc walked into the room. He grabbed the magazine from me and threw it on the floor!

I do not mind doctors making a decent living-key word, decent. The problem I have is like a previous poster said, they are owned by Big Pharma. Many don't practice medicine, they show up to prescribe the latest med their pharmaceutical rep has pushed. They don't research. There have been several instances that I know of where a doctor prescribed a medicine that could have had devastating consequences for the their patient. It was a very good thing that the pharmacist caught the mistake.

The doc we see now is 1-1.5 hours away. He only sees a few patients each day. The reason is he wants to spend as much time listening to them as he can. In most offices, once the doctor comes in, you're out in 5 minutes. With this doctor, it is not unusual for him to spend an hour or longer with the patients. He prescribes meds but he also prescribes vitamins and minerals.

Re: BREAKING! Doctors are going broke. A large number of docs headed for bankruptcy.

Let them go bankrupt. All they do now is soft kill us anyways and charge a fortune for it. A lot of people have no insurance and no longer go to doctors. They priced themselves out of the market. The hell with them.

Re: BREAKING! Doctors are going broke. A large number of docs headed for bankruptcy.

bankruptcy for a doctor means only one mansion and a porsche instead of a lamborgini.

Quoting: Anonymous Coward 0

I'm sick of reading shit like this.

I work for 36 doctors. I cannot tell you the last time many of them have bought a new car.

Several drive 2003 model trucks, minivans and suvs.

They are expcect to go to school for 10 years to get an MD degree at the cost of over 1/2 million dollars.

They are expected to pay malpractice insurance, run a practice , pay overhead, pay for an EMR at the tune of 400k just to get their money they are owed....by the time they get their bills paid most of them make less than 200k a year.

Its the Plastic Surgeons and Vanity docs that make the millions of dollars.

Re: BREAKING! Doctors are going broke. A large number of docs headed for bankruptcy.

I just don't see how they could go under. I mean, 150.00 for a 5 minute visit?? That's what I get charged to go and see the doc and get prescriptions re-filled. That's like 1800 and hour. Wish I could make that much...

I love physics. It bonds us eternally, it's what makes our computers work, it's what's in my morning cup of coffee, it's the thing that keeps the universe from vanishing due to lack of belief...

Re: BREAKING! Doctors are going broke. A large number of docs headed for bankruptcy.

I just don't see how they could go under. I mean, 150.00 for a 5 minute visit?? That's what I get charged to go and see the doc and get prescriptions re-filled. That's like 1800 and hour. Wish I could make that much...

Quoting: GeekOfTheWeek

Dude.....that money goes to the last 10 fuckerst that came through and DIDN't PAY.

Don't you get it?

20,000,000 illegals in this country that DON't pay.

Then there are the legals that don't pay or DOn't have health insurance

Then there is the malpractise insurance that costs 300,000k per doc per year.

Then teh office overhead with nurses and staff to do patient check in and billing and an IT deparment.

that 150.00 doens't even cover electricity when it's all said in done.

And that is if that doctor has enough patients ...one every 1/2 hour of every day.

Even if that doctor billed out 2400.00 that day he is contracted with insurance companies and they agree he will only be paid x amount. Usually that 2400 will be reduced to 1600.00

After that that money must pay overhead. Rent on a decent size office is about 2 grand a month. If he has a receptionist, a nurse, a nurse prantioner to cover him while he is seeing patients in the hostipital, and a billing person his overhead is not even covered by that 1600.00 he made that day.

His overhead is close to 2k per day in salaries, medical malpractice insurance and rent, electricity, mpls to keep his data hippa compliant.....the list goes on....

Then once the contracted rate is set....you have people that don't pay ....so they have to write that off.

For some reason people don't feel like they are required to pay medical bills. Like it should be free.

Yet laws and lawsuits have made it so hard for doctors to practise......I don't see how any of them stay in business.

Re: BREAKING! Doctors are going broke. A large number of docs headed for bankruptcy.

I suppose it's all specific to the type of practice. I'm sure cardiologists have some pretty high overhead w/all the necessary diagnostic equipment and higher insurance premiums.

My family doctor, I have to say, can't be doing that poorly. He hires a bunch of PAs and they are the ones who see all the patients. Then they pack us into the office on such a tight schedule that they invariably are running a couple of hours late. There's nothing like sitting in a doc's office for two or three hours around people coughing and sneezing - if you aren't sick when you go in, you are about to get sick when you leave.

When my son had his appendix out at the local hospital this past summer, the final tab was $50K. Granted, they kept him a couple of days because it was leaky and they wanted to ensure he wouldn't get an infection, but somebody is making big bucks off health care.

Re: BREAKING! Doctors are going broke. A large number of docs headed for bankruptcy.

Well......what goes around comes around. They have been bankrupting other folks for many years with not a single tear shed on their part.

Quoting: Time to Reap 8378234

Many do because they fall into the trap of being told how to care for their patients. They are taught how to care for patients instead of using their own God given common sense. They prescribe man made poison they has never cured one illness. Medicine made from chemicals destroy our bodies when use too often. Family doctors no longer use what has cured humans for thousands of years because that is no longer the profitable thing to do. They have allowed the government to rule them as well. Many will find out they sold out and now they must start counting their chickens. Many have destroyed lives while sucking them dry doing it. There are a few moral doctors around that do not believe in chemical cocktails. They will remain in business. Peace to all.

Re: BREAKING! Doctors are going broke. A large number of docs headed for bankruptcy.

bankruptcy for a doctor means only one mansion and a porsche instead of a lamborgini.

Quoting: Anonymous Coward 0

I'm sick of reading shit like this.

I work for 36 doctors. I cannot tell you the last time many of them have bought a new car.

Several drive 2003 model trucks, minivans and suvs.

They are expcect to go to school for 10 years to get an MD degree at the cost of over 1/2 million dollars.

They are expected to pay malpractice insurance, run a practice , pay overhead, pay for an EMR at the tune of 400k just to get their money they are owed....by the time they get their bills paid most of them make less than 200k a year.

Its the Plastic Surgeons and Vanity docs that make the millions of dollars.

Re: BREAKING! Doctors are going broke. A large number of docs headed for bankruptcy.

bankruptcy for a doctor means only one mansion and a porsche instead of a lamborgini.

Quoting: Anonymous Coward 0

I'm sick of reading shit like this.

I work for 36 doctors. I cannot tell you the last time many of them have bought a new car.

Several drive 2003 model trucks, minivans and suvs.

They are expcect to go to school for 10 years to get an MD degree at the cost of over 1/2 million dollars.

They are expected to pay malpractice insurance, run a practice , pay overhead, pay for an EMR at the tune of 400k just to get their money they are owed....by the time they get their bills paid most of them make less than 200k a year.

Its the Plastic Surgeons and Vanity docs that make the millions of dollars.

They are expected to treat people that cannot pay and do not have insurance.

I cannot tell you how bad the issue is but Google hostpital filing bankruptcy and you will start to see the problem;

There is HUGE disconnect between what people THINK doctors make and what is protrayed on TV and what real life is.

You don't have a single fucking clue as to what the fuck you are talking about so keep you fucking car comments to yourself.

I'm going to karma pin this bad boy.

When people start getting refused for treatment....and it IS startig to happen they will wake the fuck up then.

Quoting: FatalW1shes

I have a friend here who runs his own company doing home repairs and remodeling. He said that he doesn't know ANY doctors around here who have less than an estate fit for a sheik. Usually they have several houses and a FLEET new or late model cars. Beautiful furnishings and beautiful oil paintings on all the walls, new carpets...all topnotch and up to date. One doctor had 8 plasma tv's in his house, and that was when they first came out and were about 8K each.I agree, they pay a LOT for their education, but none of the ones around here have been hurting, according to what he has told me. He said their wives are something else, it's like they just can't THROW enough money at whatever they want. The money was like water to them, he said.That may be changing, I don't know...

Re: BREAKING! Doctors are going broke. A large number of docs headed for bankruptcy.

I just don't see how they could go under. I mean, 150.00 for a 5 minute visit?? That's what I get charged to go and see the doc and get prescriptions re-filled. That's like 1800 and hour. Wish I could make that much...

Quoting: GeekOfTheWeek

Dude.....that money goes to the last 10 fuckerst that came through and DIDN't PAY.

Don't you get it?

20,000,000 illegals in this country that DON't pay.

Then there are the legals that don't pay or DOn't have health insurance

Then there is the malpractise insurance that costs 300,000k per doc per year.

Then teh office overhead with nurses and staff to do patient check in and billing and an IT deparment.

that 150.00 doens't even cover electricity when it's all said in done.

And that is if that doctor has enough patients ...one every 1/2 hour of every day.

Even if that doctor billed out 2400.00 that day he is contracted with insurance companies and they agree he will only be paid x amount. Usually that 2400 will be reduced to 1600.00

After that that money must pay overhead. Rent on a decent size office is about 2 grand a month. If he has a receptionist, a nurse, a nurse prantioner to cover him while he is seeing patients in the hostipital, and a billing person his overhead is not even covered by that 1600.00 he made that day.

His overhead is close to 2k per day in salaries, medical malpractice insurance and rent, electricity, mpls to keep his data hippa compliant.....the list goes on....

Then once the contracted rate is set....you have people that don't pay ....so they have to write that off.

For some reason people don't feel like they are required to pay medical bills. Like it should be free.

Yet laws and lawsuits have made it so hard for doctors to practise......I don't see how any of them stay in business.

Don't get me started on Medicare and Medicade.

Quoting: FatalW1shes

Oh I get it alright. But we are talking about private practices here, not the emergency room doctors...

I love physics. It bonds us eternally, it's what makes our computers work, it's what's in my morning cup of coffee, it's the thing that keeps the universe from vanishing due to lack of belief...

Re: BREAKING! Doctors are going broke. A large number of docs headed for bankruptcy.

bankruptcy for a doctor means only one mansion and a porsche instead of a lamborgini.

Quoting: Anonymous Coward 0

I'm sick of reading shit like this.

I work for 36 doctors. I cannot tell you the last time many of them have bought a new car.

Several drive 2003 model trucks, minivans and suvs.

They are expcect to go to school for 10 years to get an MD degree at the cost of over 1/2 million dollars.

They are expected to pay malpractice insurance, run a practice , pay overhead, pay for an EMR at the tune of 400k just to get their money they are owed....by the time they get their bills paid most of them make less than 200k a year.

Its the Plastic Surgeons and Vanity docs that make the millions of dollars.

Re: BREAKING! Doctors are going broke. A large number of docs headed for bankruptcy.

They were easily 'bought' by Big Pharma, and now they have to pay back the school loans that taught them to be indifferent to human life, to see people as 'units'.

They are 'owned' by Big Pharma and their employers demand they heavily push unsafe vaccines, unproven drugs and ridiculous amounts of incredibly expensive tests. Since they earn commissions on doing so, they can supplement their incomes quite handsomely.

Money.

All because they have lost sight of their gift to Humanity and their lack of desire to honor and value LIFE.

Quoting: Anonymous Coward 1337468

When I told my cardiologist, the chief of cardiology at a university hospital, that a vitamin was helping me and not the med, a beta blocker he prescribed from big pharma, he told me I was imagining it. Practically told me I was crazy. That was the last time I saw him after having him as a cardiologist for several years. That was 17 years ago, and I can't miss a day without my vitamin supplement. I did find a doctor who approves of it!

Re: BREAKING! Doctors are going broke. A large number of docs headed for bankruptcy.

This is bad news. For the ones who want them to go under, ask yourself why. Did you go to school for 10 or 12 years, and go into debt to help save peoples lives. Did you spend countless years, not making ANY money, while studying the human body. Did you stay up late to learn and pass the MCAT, and the state exams?? Or better yet, did you go to college and study hard science class, did more community hours than you count?? As a pre-med student this upsets me, when people say MD's should go under, when you have no idea what doctors have to do to get into medical school, the scarifices they make, and than the stress they deal with on a daily basis.